tonight, several breaking stories as we come on the air. six days until election day. the president and joe biden both making news. covid cases soaring. the new numbers. but first, the hurricane tonight, slamming into the u.s. at this hour. wind gusts, 110 miles per hour. warnings into the carolinas at this hour. and this will bring storms all the way up into the northeast. rob marciano standing by live where the storm is coming ashore tonight. the race for the white house. president trump in arizona. what he's now saying about the virus in the midwest. and elsewhere, where cases are now soaring. and joe biden tonight blasting the president after hundreds of trump supporters were stranded in near freezing cold for hours. some taken to the hospital. and tonight, new audio now emerging of jared kushner and

what he said to journalist bob woodward about the president and the nation's doctors. the record-breaking early vote in this country. more than 75 million ballots cast so far. the eye-opening numbers from texas and florida. and tonight, the warning now from authorities in several states. if you requested a mail-in ballot or an absentee ballot, what you should do now to make sure your vote counts. and tonight, we're in the heartland with america's farmers. many of whom voted for president trump four years ago. you will hear from the farmers tonight on both sides. the coronavirus exploding. cases now on the rise in 45 states. half a million americans testing positive in just the last week. where they are running out of beds and health care workers, as authorities now look into possible second infections. the dodgers win the world series and right there in the celebration on the field, the player who had tested positive for covid and who had been told to stay in isolation. tonight, the fallout.

good evening and it's great to have you with us here on a very busy wednesday night. the all-out sprint to the finish. president trump and joe biden and their closing arguments, with six days to go and with coronavirus surging. new and disturbing numbers tonight. but we cannot ignore the emergency playing out right now, the hurricane slamming into the u.s. at this hour. a record year now. the fifth hurricane to hit louisiana. authorities tonight urging millions to take this seriously, not to let your guard down. warnings into the carolinas. this will then move quickly and bring storms all the way up into the northeast. hurricane zeta with 110-mile-an-hour winds and a life-threatening storm surge for hundreds of miles. let's get right to rob marciano there getting hit in new orleans at this hour. rob? >> reporter: we are, david. the eye wall of hurricane zeta right now is cutting into new orleans. we've already had winds gusting over 100 miles an hour. south of here. you can see the winds ripping down canal street. see the giant palm trees. all season, new orleans has been threatened, but tonight, this city is taking a direct hit.

tonight, fast-moving hurricane zeta slamming the gulf coast, with high winds and surging waves, as families hunker down. >> it does not look like we're going to escape this time. people need to hunker down and be prepared. >> reporter: here comes zeta ripping ashore in southeast louisiana. the third hurricane to make landfall in this state in just two months. this time, new orleans going to take a direct hit. >> this is not a drill. we do expect directly impacting the city of new orleans. >> reporter: the city closing its massive floodgates. and then there's this wall. new since katrina, just east of new orleans. designed to keep any gulf surge out of the city. it is huge. 26 feet high and nearly two miles across. five tropical systems striking louisiana since the start of the covid pandemic. zeta coming less than a week before election day. >> we've identified in advance all of the polling locations so that power restoration efforts can be prioritized there. >> what a situation playing out

tonight. rob, we can see you are getting slammed right now. best you can, take us through the timing of this as we head into the night. >> reporter: well, it's the strongest storm we've had this late in the season make landfall in over 100 years, david. it's moving quickly, so, that means, that's good in getting through it quick, but it's going to hit a huge portion of the u.s. look at this. tropical storm warnings now up all the way into virginia with the path of this thing. tornado watches, a storm surge of up to 11 feet and rain, yeah, but my biggest concern is damaging winds. let's time that out. we're seeing it now in new orleans. we'll see it in gulfport and biloxi later tonight. cutting across alabama and north georgia tomorrow morning. and then into the northeast, it will mix with some snow, as well. new york getting rain and heavy snow across northern new england, but a punishing blow here once again across the gulf coast in louisiana. david? >> all right, rob marciano. rob, take cover. we are thinking about everyone across the gulf tonight. but in the meantime, it is

now a race to the finish for president trump and joe biden. six days to go until election day. president trump at arizona today. at each stop along the way, saying we're rounding the turn on the virus. and what the president said about the disturbing new numbers, the cases in the midwest and elsewhere. joe biden promising a national plan to get the virus under control. holding a briefing with public health officials and blasting the president after hundreds of trump supporters were stranded in near-freezing cold for hours in nebraska overnight. some were taken to the hospital. it has become clear in these final days, as the president makes his case, he's fighting not only joe biden but the reality that there is a surge of the virus. cases up in 45 states. deaths now up in 30 states. here's our chief white house correspondent jonathan karl. >> reporter: in the final days of his campaign, donald trump is facing two foes, joe biden and a pandemic that is getting worse in the very places he needs to win.

unable to ignore the virus, he's downplaying it and he's making promises. >> and a safe vaccine is coming very quickly. you're going to have it momentarily, that eradicates the virus. we're rounding the turn regardless. normal life will fully resume. that's what we want, right? normal life. normal life. >> reporter: campaigning in nebraska, a rare acknowledgement from the president that some parts of the country are hurting. >> the midwest, a little areas in the midwest, certain areas that are heated up right now, they'll go down. they'll go down very quickly. they'll be down within two weeks. >> reporter: but the president's own coronavirus task force offered a much bleaker assessment in a report sent to governors this week, describing quote unrelenting, broad community spread in the midwest, upper midwest and the west, saying, quote, it will require aggressive mitigation to control. the president still insists the only reason the numbers are going up is because there's more testing. >> you know why we have so many cases?

because we test more. >> reporter: but today, the president's point person on testing says that's not true. that more people are getting sick and more people are dying. >> we do assess that cases are actually going up, they're real. because hospitalizations and deaths are starting to go up. >> reporter: he also warned that if americans don't wear masks, socially distance and avoid crowds, local governments will need to impose, quote, draconian measures to control the virus. back in april, the white house coronavirus task force released recommendations for a gradual reopening of the states. back then, the president's son-in-law jared kushner told bob woodward, in a recording on obtained by cnn, that the president was taking control back from the doctors. >> that in my mind was almost like, you know, was almost like trump getting the country back from the doctors, right? in the sense that what he now did was, you know, he's going to own the open up. that basically was, we've now put out rules to get back to work. trump's now back in charge. it's not the doctors. >> reporter: but the president quickly undermined his

administration's guidelines by urging states to open up fully immediately. today, dr. fauci said that if states had followed the plan, we would not be facing a covid-19 surge right now. >> if everybody had done that uniformly, i don't think we would be in the position we're in right now. >> reporter: now the president is once again disregarding recommendations of health experts, holding packed rallies in places where infections are on the rise. after a trump rally in nebraska last night, the president's supporters were left stranded outside in near-freezing temperatures. a fox reporter tweeted pictures as supporters waited for hours for buses to take them home. many, including seniors, were forced to walk some 2 1/2 miles. some 30 people sought help from paramedics, seven people were transported to the hospital. joe biden today said it's a reflection of the way trump has handled the pandemic. >> he gets his photo-op and he gets out. he leaves everyone else to

suffer the consequence of his failure to make a responsible plan. >> reporter: as for biden, he's keeping a much lower profile. his only scheduled event today was in his home state of delaware, a covid briefing with health officials. after that, he went out to vote. >> all right, so, let's get right to jon karl live with us in washington tonight. and jon, you mentioned there in your report, the president facing really two opponents here, joe biden and this virus, given this disturbing surge and it's taking hold, we take note, in some key battleground states. >> reporter: david, the virus, new infections are actually on the rise in every single battleground state. none more dramatically than wisconsin, which has seen an increase in new infections of some 400% over the past two months. >> of course, every state counts, but we point that out, given the fact we have six days to go until this election. the president counting on those battlegrounds, as you know. and there was another headline you're following. we all remember some time back "the new york times" publishing an op-ed from anonymous administration official describing himself as part of, quote, the resistance, inside

the trump administration. and today, that anonymous official actually revealing himself? >> reporter: the anonymous official is someone named miles taylor, hardly a household name. at the time, he was the deputy chief of staff for the secretary of homeland security. i think many people were under the impression, i know i was, that the article was written by somebody with a much more senior role. miles taylor wrote today that he also wanted to recognize the officials who spoke out but did not do so anonymously, saying, quote, history will also record the names of those souls who had everything to lose but stood up anyway. david? >> jon karl. jon, six days to go, thank you. more than 75 million americans have voted already. that's more than half of the entire vote four years ago. and tonight here, if you requested a mail-in ballot and haven't sent yours in, what authorities are now saying you should do and now to make sure your vote counts. here's marcus moore tonight. >> reporter: tonight, the early

voting tsunami continues. 57 million casting their ballots across the country. texas leads the nation with more than 8 million already voting. that is 90% of the entire vote from 2016. >> nice to meet you. >> reporter: democrat beto o'rourke lost a narrow senate race in 2018, but saw a huge increase in turnout. he is now canvassing with covid restrictions to try and turn the state blue. >> texas could end this country's national nightmare on the night of november 3rd. >> reporter: biden trails by just four points in the polls. the republican governor going door-to-door himself to hold off the challenge. >> i work in oil and gas, so what biden and kamala harris have said is very scary. >> reporter: in the battleground state of florida, nearly 7 million have voted, surpassing the early vote from four years ago by 300,000. enthusiasm at a fever pitch. in orlando, a woman showed up to vote just after going into labor, refusing to go to the hospital until she filled out a ballot. >> i was letting her know that november 3rd by 7:00 p.m., that she had to drop it off and she

told me, no, no, no, i want to fill it out right now. >> reporter: republicans in the sunshine state making a surge. on monday, they trailed democrats in early voter turnout by more than 350,000. that is now down to less than 250,000 in just two days. officials in a number of states bracing for an avalanche of mail-in ballots. nearly 50 million sent in, but more than 40 million ballots not yet returned. tonight, this warning -- >> it's now important to return your ballots in person. don't rely on the mail. regardless of what state you're in, get your ballots in by your state's deadline. >> marcus moore from texas tonight. and marcus, several states, as you report there, warning people who have those mail-in ballots and still haven't mailed them in, that they might want to deliver in person now. even the u.s. post office issuing guidance tonight? >> reporter: yeah, that's right, david. the post office says voters should allow at least a week before their state's deadline. and they also report that their on-time delivery is below the normal rate and it is also critical that people with mail-in ballots remember they can go to their local drop-in

location and deliver those ballots by hand in person to make sure their vote counts. david? >> marcus moore in dallas tonight. marcus, thank you. and on election night, abc news, of course, will be on the air, live coverage with our powerhouse political team. starts at 7:00 p.m. eastern, tuesday night, right after "world news tonight." that's one week from last night, if you're counting, six days to go, as i mentioned. the coronavirus front and center in this election. cases now rising in those 45 states. you can see there on the map. more than 72,000 new cases in the past 24 hours. more than 227,000 lives lost. and tonight, new guidance now with thanksgiving nearing. here's our chief national correspondent matt gutman from utah. >> reporter: tonight, the virus continues to race through the heartland. it took nearly three months to hit 500,000 cases. but that many new cases reported just the past week. utah one of 32 states the coronavirus task force calls a red zone. they're desperately short of medical staff here. so, you can create more beds but you can't create more doctors

and nurses. >> right, we can't just make icu doctors, icu nurses or floor nurses. >> reporter: and for icu nurses like michelle marshall, each patient's death feels personal. >> when i fail, it's really, really hard. you know, and i'm sure the doctors and everyone in the health community can relate to that, that it's just -- it's just -- it doesn't get easy. >> reporter: the white house the task force urging utah to enforce mask wearing, but some businesses bucking the mandate. a minority have even called it a hoax. what do you make of that? >> it's -- quite frankly, it's insulting to health care workers and to scientists. and i haven't been spending the last seven, eight months of my life away from my family, away from my kids, because of a hoax. >> reporter: cases now rising in 45 states and deaths climbing in 30 states. tonight, more questions about how common it is for covid patients to become reinfected. doctors in south dakota are investigating whether 28 people might have been infected a second time with a different strain of the virus.

dr. anthony fauci today warning that even if most americans are vaccinated in the middle of next year, we might not see life back to normal until 2022. >> i think it will be easily by the end of 2021 and perhaps even into the next year before we start having some semblances of normality. >> reporter: and tonight, dr. fauci also saying, david, that it is small family gatherings, six to ten people, that are helping to drive up the pandemic. they are often infected by their asymptomatic loved ones and that's why he's got some bad news this holiday, urging people to avoid those thanksgiving get togethers. david? >> all right, matt gutman in utah tonight. matt, thank you. and of course, this evening, a key constituency with the election, america's farmers. and the president joking overnight that some people say our farmers do better now than when they actually had a farm. abc's kayna whitworth in iowa tonight as we hear from farmers divided on who to vote for. >> reporter: lindsay larson has been harvesting this land in iowa for 40 years.

in august, he lost half of his corn to a massive storm. >> i know that we've just gone through one of our worst harvests in 2020, but i'm already starting to make plans for 2021. >> reporter: the lifelong republican farmer among the crucial base the president won in 2016 and is now relying on for a second term. >> the farmers are unbelievable. they're the heart of this nation. >> reporter: but u.s. farmers have been left reeling from the president's trade deals, devastating weather and covid-19. the federal government pumping more than $37 billion in aid to american farmers. >> in fact, some people say our farmers do better now than they did when they actually had a farm. >> the aid was far from what the pain was. but the pain sometimes is necessary to get to an agreement where we can feel like we can go forward. >> reporter: supporting trump's trade policies, larson voted for him again. but the pain across the midwest continues. wisconsin losing 10% of their

dairy farms in the last year. covid cases there surging. >> i guess i've always wanted to be a farmer. >> reporter: in iowa, mike holden, a third generation farmer, has already cast his ballot for biden. the money that the trump administration then gave to farmers in iowa to keep them afloat was welcomed but not enough? >> yeah. it doesn't make up for the losses we had. it certainly softens the blow. >> reporter: the bailouts not enough for him to overlook what he views as failed leadership and a lack of civility in the white house. >> i think he's dangerously reckless. i think he's brutally insensitive and disrespectful. >> reporter: david, vice president joe biden plans a visit to iowa later this week. and the farmers that i spoke with said, no matter what happens, they will still wake up early and they will do their jobs feeding the country. david? >> our dedicated farmers. kayna, thank you. and with this surge of the virus, a note on the economy tonight. the dow falling 943 points today. 3.4%, its worst day since june. when we come back here

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when i announced i was running, i said that's the reason, to rebuild the backbone of this country: hard-working folks of the middle class. i'm joe biden and i approve this message. let's get back to rob marciano in new orleans. hurricane zeta making landfall in the last hour. hey, rob. >> reporter: hi, david. a remarkable 20 minutes since we last talked. it got so bad, we had to take cover. and now the winds are calming. we're getting into the relative calm of the eye of the storm, which means, well, it's only about halfway over and the calm won't last long, because it's moving so quickly, which also means that it's going to drive inland and take those damaging winds well inland. georgia, mississippi, all the way into virginia.

so many americans being impacted by yet another hurricane. david? >> thank you, rob. i know so many people are exhausted. but please take it seriously. and i'll see you right back here tomorrow night. good night. woman: after covid, my hours got so we can't pay our bills. and now our family budget is gonna be hit hard with prop 15. the yes on 15 ads say it only raises taxes on big corporations. that's not true - we're all going to pay. $11 billion in new property taxes will get passed on to small businesses and farms. they'll raise prices... ...higher gas, health care, food...even day care. we can't make ends meet now. families can't afford 15.

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county register. these ballots had a problem and a lot had to do with signatures. that's coming up. i'm kris reyes. getting out the vote. what organizations big and small are doing to rally communities to cast their ballot. and i'm meteorologist drew tuma. we're days away from november, but it's all about autumn warmth. we'll have details in the accuweather forecast. >> announcer: building a better bay area for a safe and secure future, this is abc 7 news. election day is less than one week away. a record number of early voters have cast their ballots. while california allows early ballots to be opened and processed immediately, other state haves different rules like pennsylvania, michigan and wisconsin could decide the election but not until after election night. >> they're going to have to start from scratch. let's start signature verifying. let's open up these ballots. let's start running them through the machines and if we're waiting for those three states to decide this presidential election, we can be wti